


in Life's service

by SearchingforSerendipity



Category: Iron Man - All Media Types, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Young Wizards - Diane Duane
Genre: Crossover, Gen, POV Second Person
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-08
Updated: 2017-03-08
Packaged: 2018-10-01 05:26:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10181651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SearchingforSerendipity/pseuds/SearchingforSerendipity
Summary: Your reasons for saying the Oath are many and diverse, going from wanting to walk on water to wishing to avoid being bullied.  In the end your problems, big and small, are made bigger when you proclaim the Oath.That's alright. You become bigger, too.Pepper Potts, young woman and young wizard.





	

 

You are thirteen and your shoes have holes in them, your shoes that squeak in the quiet of the school library. You are thirteen and you do not find the book by accident; you are searching, purposefully, in the economics section of your Los Angeles middle school. Not home economics, actual economics, because your problems are not home problems. Your problems are bigger than that, and so are you.

You, Virginia Potts, are looking for a way out. So the manual give you one. Hallelujah, thank the Powers.

 

 

Your reasons for saying the Oath are many and diverse, going from wanting to walk on water to wishing to avoid being bullied. You know your mother's problems aren't going to be solved by a few magical words, and you wouldn't want to find your father even if you could, but you are pretty sure there has to be some spell to patch up old sneakers.

In the end your problems, big and small, are made bigger when you proclaim the Oath. That's alright. You become bigger, too.

 

 

You are thirteen. You have defeated Death, the Star-Snuffer, the Devil, the horror that lives in the hearts of men and outside of them, too. There are no casualties except you innocence and the trees of Griffith Park. You are victorious, and the burning leaves around you are red, your hair is red, and your hands are red too. You are thirteen and there is blood all over your hands. The blood is yours. You think you have rescinded the right to spill blood not your own. From this day on the blood on your hands will only be yours, or your friend's.

You are wrong. You will be bloody to the elbows when the end comes. But you are thirteen, Ordeal passed, hometown saved. The local Senior patches you up. Blood is necessary for healing spells but, in danger of being repetitive, you have plenty of that to spare at the moment.

You go home, your poor sad home, and sleep a hero's sleep.

(Nightmares wake you up long before dawn)

 

 

 

Ana Jarvis is the only grown wizard you know on Earth for years. She is a kind woman who fought in the Allies branch of wizards in the Eastern Front. She is also Head Advisory for most of Los Angeles. Her specialty is in air spells, how they relate to velocity, time, sound and light. You do not know that then, but she leaves her old worn manual conspicuously beside a warm tray of apple tarts, set to appear right where she knows young Master Anthony will most need it. Manuals have a wizardry of their own, but there's nothing wrong with tempting fate.

Tony Stark speaks the Oath seven months after your Ordeal. In two days he travels to Jupiter, starts an intergalactic war, and creates a solution to save the planet Fraith from the asteroid coming its way. You were already in Jupiter (doing your homework, the view is relaxing), you stop the intergalactic war before it happens, and the idea for solution that saves Frauth is yours.

Tony Stark is older than you by one year but more immature by half a decade. His favorite book is Once and Future King. He wears mismatched socks inside his oxfords on purpose, even though no one will see them. He loves rollerskating, and gasps in horror when you tell him you prefer bicycles.

He is loud and angry and brilliant. You are quiet and angry and brilliant. Together you nearly destroy a planetary system. Together it's the most fun you have had since you can remember. Besides, you make a great team. Why wouldn't you be partners in wizardly?

Why wouldn't you be partners?

 

 

  
"I couldn't believe the book was for real at first," you tell him. This is a big confession. Half of your appearance of competence comes from pretending belief, which is very similar to confidence, but more powerful and difficult to grasp.

You are on Jupiter again, one of the rings this tine, munching on space cheeseburger. Space cheeseburgers are way better than frozen cheeseburgers, but space pickles are of dubious origin. You stack them in a neat pile beside you, aloft in space only through your will and wizardry.

"Me neither," he says. "I guess I was hoping it was, you know? Even though it's gonna make things really hard."

You almost ask what he means before you remember. It's easy to forget that this kid beside you, in the scorched boarding school uniform, with ketchup all over his face, is Stark's kid, the future warmonger to rule them all. But then again, it's impossible to forget.

"You took the Oath."

"I did. And I'll keep it," he says, turning to you, suddenly fierce. "I will. I promise Pepper, I'm gonna guard growth, ease pain, put aside death for life — the whole thing. The whole thing, Pepper."

You recognize his fear; you have seen this boy's face as he saw the strike of red heaven-fire falling closer, falling down. You know the shape and sight of his fear as well as he knows yours. He knows your name, your name in the Speech, and after the spell he looked up at you with wide wide eyes and said, _You're burning,_ and when you said _So are you, he jad laughed and declared._   _I'm going to call you Pepper now, okay?_

Of course, neither of you were burning. It was a mirage, the after image of the wizardry behind your eyes. The nickname is going to stick, though, you can already tell, if only because you like it. 

You nod calmly, and lean close, bump your shoulder against his. "I believe you."

(You know his name, too. You know names can change, that names always change; that to know one's name can break you or make you, and sharing it is the greatest intimacy even in the battlefield.

You know his name, and so, because of it and despite it and without having anything to do with it, you believe him. You believe in him)

Tony blinks, then nods too, firm. "Good," he says, and takes another huge bite.

 

 

And the thing is, your family is still small and sad. The world is still pretty awful, and even more terrible now that you know about the hidden war of sacrifices and counted victories between wizards and the Lone One. But there is a planet billions of light years away that has been saved from deadly collision with a burning comet. There is a wizardry manual in your backpack, and the next time you sit down to study it in the library, your sneakers are silent.

One day you will be fifteen and fighting for your life, twenty and in love with your partner in business and life, wizardry and world change. Twenty five: dozens of shoes, none of them sneakers, nome of them with holes.

You will be thirty three and watching a building ran on green energy and wizardry light up with your name P O T T S bold against the Los Angeles skyline, the twin to New York's tower. There will be blood under your fingernails, power under your skin. You will be a wizard to the end of your days; your heart will always be willing.

But for now you are thirteen, Virginia Potts, and your shadow against the floor cast its own light.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> This idea is rather disjointed from anything else, but it was fun to write. Pepper is an incredible character, and while reading the series I couldn't help thinking that swould make one hell of an efficient wizard. Also, Tony and the implications of the Oath for Stark Industries, Iron Man and his character deserve a fic of their own.


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